Icelandic singer Bjork has said she wanted to tackle a "megamix" of issues on her sixth album Volta - described by her label as "the most commercial thing she's ever done".
Produced by Timbaland and also featuring Antony Hegarty of Antony And The Johnsons, Volta features songs about religion, tsunamis and suicide bombers, as well as the singer's relationship with her teenage son.
But the former Sugarcubes singer, last year voted the world's most eccentric star, also explained that she had no idea when starting out what she would be writing about.
"Before, I knew a bit beforehand about the emotional envelope I wanted things to be in," she told BBC World Service's The Beat programme.
"For [third album] Homogenic, I wanted distorted beats and overly-romantic violins playing Icelandic national anthems.
"Vespertine was very influenced by me getting my first laptop, and I wanted to create a virtual reality universe. And Medula was a vocal album.
"But with this album, I'd been in my own studio working for a long time, and I'd had a baby. By the time she was old enough to go to kindergarten, I was suffering from cabin fever. So in the beginning of this album, I was going out and having an adventure."
Mutual admiration
The singer said that one track, Earth Intruders, came to her after she had visited areas of Indonesia damaged by the tsunami in 2004.
Meanwhile My Juvenile, which is the song featuring Hegarty, sees the Mercury Prize-winning singer take on the role of Bjork's son's conscience.
"It's a conversation with myself about my teenage son and how problematic it is for grown-ups to let go of their children," she explained.
"So Antony's being Jiminy Cricket, and I'm Pinocchio."
My Juvenile is also notable for its use of a clavichord, a stringed instrument from medieval times. The album features instruments from all around the world - including an all-female brass section imitating ship foghorns.
Volta is the first time the singer had worked with Timbaland, one of the most high-profile producers in the music industry, although she said they had known each other since 1994.
"It was that mutual admiration thing going on," she recalled.
"We're both interested in northern African rhythms and Indian music. So there had always been this talk that one of these days we would do something.
"Now, with me coming out of my cabin fever state, I wanted some action."
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